Choosing and Installing an Information System

Abstract

Choosing and installing an information system for patient care is an exciting and important process for healthcare agencies, especially when considering the two major changes affecting health care today: government regulation and industry-sponsored initiatives leading to managed care. In response to these changes, major system vendors are developing solutions to meet the needs of communities rather than single acute care hospitals by developing bargaining organizations designed to provide employers with the best healthcare coverage at the lowest cost. According to Johnson (1994), these organizations will force mergers to eliminate duplicated services, help providers become more efficient, and encourage hospital-owned clinics with physicians as employees. These “opportunities” have increased interest in the fully automated patient record, which in turn depends on an information system to gather the needed information at the point of care. The purpose of these information systems is to gather data and provide information for healthcare professionals in clinical practice, management, education, and research. They also provide information to satisfy reporting requirements of the government, health insurers, and the accrediting and licensing agencies.